Saturday, September 19, 2009
Culture Week
As part of Culture Week, a group of eleven volunteers went to visit another PCV in a Ngabe community in the Bocas del Toro region of Panama. I stayed with a host family for the week. During the week we discussed different aspects of the local culture, what to expect at our site, etc.
I realized that every site is different and that I cannot prepare myself mentally or otherwise for what awaits me in my site. This realization came from my week with the host family. The community sits on the water among mangroves. While there is higher ground in the community, my host family´s home was always above water. The community has running water (that you need to treat). Latrines are built on stilts above the water. You can do the math on that one and the implications it has on the health of the community and on the community's efforts to bring in tourism. I was not prepared for the level of intensity of poverty, health concerns, and the warmth with which the community embraced me.
The host family had four beautiful girls who followed me around the community whenever possible. There was one touching moment early in the week when "Tyta" gave me a bracelet to wear. We talked in Spanish about whether or not she was sure she wanted to give it to me as a gift. I think it was a pretty big deal. She made sure to point it out to her friends as well.
Over the course of the week, the children became more and more a part of our lives, almost to a fault. We would go swimming (away from shore/servicios) in dug out canoes with the children of the community. The kids loved that I was a good tiburon (shark) and would chase after them. They loved me even more when we had an impromptu baile (dance) in my host family's house and they all got to dance with the gringo. By the end of the week, a third of the community´s children were shouting, "Hola Chigon". "Chigon" was the Ngabe nickname my host parents gave me upon arrival. Traditionally, Ngabes cast aside their actual names and take on Ngabere nicknames instead.
The main staple in the community is boiled green bananas. It's not a mash like you may be thinking. It's like a starchy potato disguised like a banana. Variations included fried slices and fried whole bananas. Not to say I didn´t eat well. Since the community is on the water, I enjoyed fresh fish and fried lobster for breakfast. I also enjoyed lemongrass teas and hot chocolate made from cacao harvested an hour away.
Other items to note include a great hike through the jungle to another PCV´s site, seeing a captured sea turtle in someone´s backyard, and having a discussion with the kids about why it is illegal to hunt sea turtles in Panama, learning more Ngabere, seeing 50 kids dog pile for candy after a piñata broke (with flour inside).
I realized that every site is different and that I cannot prepare myself mentally or otherwise for what awaits me in my site. This realization came from my week with the host family. The community sits on the water among mangroves. While there is higher ground in the community, my host family´s home was always above water. The community has running water (that you need to treat). Latrines are built on stilts above the water. You can do the math on that one and the implications it has on the health of the community and on the community's efforts to bring in tourism. I was not prepared for the level of intensity of poverty, health concerns, and the warmth with which the community embraced me.
The host family had four beautiful girls who followed me around the community whenever possible. There was one touching moment early in the week when "Tyta" gave me a bracelet to wear. We talked in Spanish about whether or not she was sure she wanted to give it to me as a gift. I think it was a pretty big deal. She made sure to point it out to her friends as well.
Over the course of the week, the children became more and more a part of our lives, almost to a fault. We would go swimming (away from shore/servicios) in dug out canoes with the children of the community. The kids loved that I was a good tiburon (shark) and would chase after them. They loved me even more when we had an impromptu baile (dance) in my host family's house and they all got to dance with the gringo. By the end of the week, a third of the community´s children were shouting, "Hola Chigon". "Chigon" was the Ngabe nickname my host parents gave me upon arrival. Traditionally, Ngabes cast aside their actual names and take on Ngabere nicknames instead.
The main staple in the community is boiled green bananas. It's not a mash like you may be thinking. It's like a starchy potato disguised like a banana. Variations included fried slices and fried whole bananas. Not to say I didn´t eat well. Since the community is on the water, I enjoyed fresh fish and fried lobster for breakfast. I also enjoyed lemongrass teas and hot chocolate made from cacao harvested an hour away.
Other items to note include a great hike through the jungle to another PCV´s site, seeing a captured sea turtle in someone´s backyard, and having a discussion with the kids about why it is illegal to hunt sea turtles in Panama, learning more Ngabere, seeing 50 kids dog pile for candy after a piñata broke (with flour inside).
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Site Announcement
Today we learned where we will be calling home for the next two years. For me, it will be in an indigenous Ngobe community with about 450 people. What does that mean? It means I'll have a house with a thatch roof on stilts. I'll have running water, but will need to treat it before drinking. I'll be building a latrine for my own use. I will not have electricity. I will need to take a boat that leaves once a day in and out of town. It will be a forty minute walk to get cell phone reception. I'll be in the sticks and having the experience of a lifetime.
My site has an aqueduct that was designed about built by current volunteers, but I will be the first PCV living in my community. The community is still working out the kinks with the aqueduct. In addition, no one uses latrines and opts to use the creeks instead. I'll be doing a lot of eductional activities on both fronts. Other projects that I may be able to take on could include gardening for domestic use (they have agriculture as a means of income), something solar related, or anything else that seems appropriate when I'm out there. I have visions of a garden and chickens, maybe a cow. We'll see what happens.
The next two weeks I'll most likely be MIA. I have my culture week in the Bocos del Toro region, "relatively" near my site. Next week I'll be learning about the culture of the region along with other volunteers. The following week, I have technical training where we'll construct composting latrines and learn about building aqueducts. Cool stuff.
That's it for now. The next post should be pretty cool since I'll be able to talk about culture and tech week. All in all, I'm having a great time.
Friday, September 4, 2009
PCV Site Visit
So I got the pleasure of visiting another Peace Corps Volunteer's (PCV) site for a few days. The volunteer lives in the Comarca Ngabe/Bugle region of Panama. A few bus rides and a boat ride later, you pull up to an amazingly picturesque site. Green hills, houses on stilts, one singular sidewalk sweeping through the village, a white sand beach nearby. The volunteer knew she had an amazing site. I would agree.
The trip out there was amazing, mostly because I went to the middle of nowhere all by my grown self. Yay for Spanish. The boat ride into the village was complete with the obligatory dolphins and small islands sprinkled along the seascape.
The site was a traditional indigenous community. The children were curious about the new gringo and the adults were very friendly. I'd be happy to be spending two years in a site like that. On that same vein, I'll be getting my site assignment next week. Stay tuned.
During the trip, I got to go to a neighboring village to discuss a potential rainwater catchment project. The meeting went well. The hike out there was fun to say the least. We had a guide who handed the two gringos walking sticks. We later found out it was so that we could feel around in the trail (which was now a pool of water) for the logs that were safe to step on. It made for a long hike. After the meeting, there was an intense rainstorm, complete with lightning a little too close for comfort. We took shelter in the community meeting place and they served us coffee. The rainstorm was a blessing in disguise because we killed the time learning a traditional Ngabe dance and checking out the village's clothing line. The women of the community make traditional dresses which they then sell to tourists. They took measurements of the PCV so that she could buy a shirt and skirt on her return visit.
Another cool moment during the trip was finding a new part of the community. We pasear'ed, which amounts to walking around the village and chatting. It's a lot of what the community does and is one of the main ways of communication in a village without electricity, etc. So we pasear'ed to to the outskirts of the community. The hike out there was difficult without a machete. We didn't know where the homes where, just a general idea of where they should be. Luckily, we had some children help lead the way. As an aside, it's a humbling experience having a barefoot six year old leave you in the dust in the middle of the jungle. All part of the adventure. When we found the homes, they gave us some oranges (which are green when ripe). I proceeded to show them that I'm clueless by trying to peel the rind, etc. They promptly showed me by cutting the rind with a knife so that I could squeeze the juice. The hike out there was much easier after they showed us the well-maintained trail that led back to the central part of the community.
All said, an amazing trip. I learned a lot about PCV life a lot more about what to expect. Big shout out to Kaitlin for being a great host. Quick cultural note: the fact that a guy visited Kaitlin did not go unnoticed. Typical conversations included: "Hello. Where are you going? Have you finally found yourself a man?" Not kidding. It's pretty interesting considering the typical Ngabe is usually very shy. They're just shocked that a 24 year old girl is still alone and they would constantly remind her of this.
Out of time in the cafe. I'll post photos from the site soon!!! Chao!
The trip out there was amazing, mostly because I went to the middle of nowhere all by my grown self. Yay for Spanish. The boat ride into the village was complete with the obligatory dolphins and small islands sprinkled along the seascape.
The site was a traditional indigenous community. The children were curious about the new gringo and the adults were very friendly. I'd be happy to be spending two years in a site like that. On that same vein, I'll be getting my site assignment next week. Stay tuned.
During the trip, I got to go to a neighboring village to discuss a potential rainwater catchment project. The meeting went well. The hike out there was fun to say the least. We had a guide who handed the two gringos walking sticks. We later found out it was so that we could feel around in the trail (which was now a pool of water) for the logs that were safe to step on. It made for a long hike. After the meeting, there was an intense rainstorm, complete with lightning a little too close for comfort. We took shelter in the community meeting place and they served us coffee. The rainstorm was a blessing in disguise because we killed the time learning a traditional Ngabe dance and checking out the village's clothing line. The women of the community make traditional dresses which they then sell to tourists. They took measurements of the PCV so that she could buy a shirt and skirt on her return visit.
Another cool moment during the trip was finding a new part of the community. We pasear'ed, which amounts to walking around the village and chatting. It's a lot of what the community does and is one of the main ways of communication in a village without electricity, etc. So we pasear'ed to to the outskirts of the community. The hike out there was difficult without a machete. We didn't know where the homes where, just a general idea of where they should be. Luckily, we had some children help lead the way. As an aside, it's a humbling experience having a barefoot six year old leave you in the dust in the middle of the jungle. All part of the adventure. When we found the homes, they gave us some oranges (which are green when ripe). I proceeded to show them that I'm clueless by trying to peel the rind, etc. They promptly showed me by cutting the rind with a knife so that I could squeeze the juice. The hike out there was much easier after they showed us the well-maintained trail that led back to the central part of the community.
All said, an amazing trip. I learned a lot about PCV life a lot more about what to expect. Big shout out to Kaitlin for being a great host. Quick cultural note: the fact that a guy visited Kaitlin did not go unnoticed. Typical conversations included: "Hello. Where are you going? Have you finally found yourself a man?" Not kidding. It's pretty interesting considering the typical Ngabe is usually very shy. They're just shocked that a 24 year old girl is still alone and they would constantly remind her of this.
Out of time in the cafe. I'll post photos from the site soon!!! Chao!
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